1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a hockey stick construction and more particularly to a hockey stick replacement blade with adhesive free means for connecting the blade to a hockey stick shaft. The invention also relates to an adhesive free method of connecting a hockey stick replacement blade with a hockey stick shaft.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Hockey sticks in general have experienced dramatic changes throughout the years. As a result, ice hockey sticks have evolved from plain wooden sticks having a straight blade and shaft to sticks having a curved blade and fiberglass reinforcement. The construction of hockey sticks has also evolved substantially. Initially, the shaft and blade portions were constructed of wood and were integrally joined with one another through various processes known in the art. As technology developed, metal shafts, particularly aluminum shafts, were introduced as a substitute for the traditional wooden shafts. These shafts were elongated and were constructed of a tubular section of aluminum or other light weight metal. Shafts of this type were used with replacement blades having a blade replacement tenon for insertion into the hollow aluminum shaft and secured in that position by various forms of heat sensitive adhesives.
Plastic or composite shafts have also been developed. Like aluminum shafts, they are elongated and generally hollow and are secured to a replacement blade in a manner similar to aluminum shafts utilizing various forms of heat sensitive or other adhesives. Replacement blades have also undergone evolution from wooden blades to blades constructed of various plastics and other synthetic materials. In recent years, hockey sticks have been developed for street or roller hockey. Initially, many of the sticks used in roller or street hockey were constructed solely of plastic with an integral shaft and blade. As this sport continued to evolve, however, aluminum and plastic or composite shafts were designed for use with replacement blades similar in design to those used for ice hockey and, in some cases, interchangeable with ice hockey replacement blades. For the most part, however, the mechanism for connecting replacement blades to the hollow metal or plastic shafts involved providing the replacement blade with a tenon and securing the blade to the shaft through the use of a heat sensitive or other adhesive disposed between the tenon and the hollow interior of the shaft.
Because of the nature of the adhesives used, it has been necessary to heat the shaft or blade, and thus the adhesive, so that the adhesive softens or liquifies in order to connect a blade to the shaft or to remove a blade from the shaft for replacement by another. In many cases heat is applied by means of a blow torch or other similar device. However, a blow torch is not desirable for use with plastic blades or shafts. More recently heat guns and other devices have been developed for heating the shaft or blade to a temperature sufficiently high to soften or melt the adhesive and thereby facilitate connection of the replacement blade to, or disconnection of the replacement blade from the shaft. These other devices are electrically powered; thus, a source of electricity is necessary to replace a broken blade or shaft using such devices.
Limited alternative mechanisms exist for connecting certain types of replacement blades to shafts which do not require adhesives. For the most part, however, these alternative connection mechanisms require screws or threaded members to retain the blade relative to the shaft. Such alternative connection mechanisms, are not widely used compared to the conventional method of using a hot melt adhesive.
Thus, there is a need in the art for an improved mechanism for connecting a hockey stick replacement blade to a hockey stick shaft and particularly, a mechanism and a method which eliminates the use of heat sensitive or other adhesive.